The official seal, a symbol of Mount Airy’s history that’s adorned vehicles, the Municipal Building and city government and Chamber of Commerce Web sites, could itself become history.

Unveiled in 1977, the multi-faceted city logo reflects what were the dominant local employers at that time: textiles, furniture, tobacco and granite. However, with the demise of tobacco sales warehouses as well as various industrial plants in Mount Airy, only granite remains a viable part of the community’s economic picture.

Those changes, coupled with modern efforts by cities to “brand” themselves though logos and marketing images designed to show their readiness to meet economic challenges of the 21st century, have caused some to wonder whether Mount Airy’s seal needs revamping.

At a planning retreat of city officials earlier this year, Mayor Deborah Cochran asked if there was “interest in a new seal that would market our city in a different light.” Cochran said that question had been raised in the community, and it was presented during the retreat as part of officials’ efforts in setting long-range goals for the municipality.

The mayor pointed out that while Mount Airy doesn’t want to forget key industries that helped it grow, most of the images on the seal now “are just shadows.”

There was discussion among Mount Airy council members about having the seal possibly redesigned to more adequately reflect the city’s present and future. The contrast of the seal’s images with modern reality has become noticeable to outsiders, including a reporter for a national newspaper who recently penned an article about this community’s economic woes.

“The guy with USA Today, that’s one of the first things he brought up,” said Commissioner Teresa Lewis, who was among those interviewed for that article.

Cochran added that similar comments have come from local residents about the relevance of the seal to present conditions.

But changing the seal could be easier said that done.

“It’s difficult to draw a picture of what you want to be as a community,” Commissioner Jon Cawley observed during the retreat.

Holding a contest in which the public is allowed to submit design ideas for the important symbol of Mount Airy was suggested.

“This would be a good year to do it,” Steve Yokeley, another board member, said in reference to Mount Airy’s 125th birthday that is being observed throughout 2010.

However, no firm plans for changing the seal through a public contest or other means have been forged, and the mayor says the issue is on hold while the municipality deals with other needs. These include creating jobs and seeking a new city manager.

“That is kind of at a standstill right now,” Cochran said recently of the new seal design.

Mini-Controversy?

Another Mount Airy official, Commissioner Todd Harris, has suggested that the city could be courting controversy by tampering with a symbol some community residents consider sacred. Harris pointed to two other “relatively small issues” over the past two years that have stirred up a large degree of emotion.

One of those was a project to provide public restrooms in the downtown area, which produced negative comments about the facade of those facilities not conforming to the appearance of neighboring buildings.

The other issue cited by Harris concerned a 1920s-era house on Cherry Street, which some preservationists sought to save and opponents wanted to see razed to provide more parking for Reeves Community Center. The city eventually sold it as surplus to a local woman who restored the old structure for her residence.

Harris, while agreeing that the city seal is outdated, wondered if this project is one city officials want to take a chance of getting “mired down” in — “or do we have bigger fish to fry?”

Contact Tom Joyce at tjoyce@mtairynews.com or at 719-1924.